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A Flash of Wind
Sunagakure. Capital village of the Land of Wind, which resides in the biggest desert in the known world. Its brutal heat is unforgiving, and without proper transportation, is a killer. Nomads have helped people travel through the Land of Wind for centuries, when Sunagakure was nothing but a collection of huts in the middle of the desert, sitting on the largest underground oasis in the Land of Wind. Rumors fly around the village day by day, but the biggest rumor is a particular couple have been investigating goings on in the village that aren't particularly positive. Shishi Honpou, former covert op and someone who has firsthand knowledge of what those two were looking for, and Inochi Yamanaka, her cherished companion, find themselves within the confines of the village, looking for these two, hoping to get some answers. But their search yielded nothing, having been told the couple had already departed from Sunagakure. So the two head towards an inn to rest and relax while they plan their next move. ---- Even at sunset, the beautiful desert oasis seemed to glitter like the jewel it was. Despite the heat, there was a hint of a breeze lingering in the air, tantalizing in its promise of refreshment. By now, however, he knew better than to expect the wind to deliver; it was fickle, a tease. The wind came and went of its own accord, and it delighted at frustrating the villagers with its free spirit. Now that the sun was beginning to fall into slumber, he'd done away with his jacket, letting the last of the sun's rays caress his impossibly pale skin. The village's golden boy sat atop a roof, on one of the taller buildings in Sunagakure, looking out and observing the people below. His body ached, and his exposed arms were covered in bruises and cuts from the day's brutal training. Yoru's mouth, however, was completely free of the burns that had at one point accompanied his training sessions, a mark of the mastery he'd attained over fire. Truly, he should've been retiring to bed early, giving into his exhaustion, but the impulse to get one last good look at his home before he slept was too great to resist. Yoru had a habit of doing this, peering down at the villagers from a great height. He enjoyed watching over them; doing so made him feel a little more like he genuinely belonged amongst them. Once upon a time, they'd feared him, loathed him, resented him for his blood and his inheritance. No longer. All the tears he'd shed, the insecurity he'd felt, ended up being worth it. Yoru had devoted himself to this place and its inhabitants, and gradually, he'd earned their trust and respect. He was no longer a marked man, and he'd long since stopped feeling glares directed at him when his back was turned. The Uchiha blinked, shaking himself from his thoughts. He sensed a pair of unusual chakra signatures mixed in with the crowd below, and his brow furrowed. Something about these signatures...felt foreign, off. Drawing one of his signature kunai, he threw it in the general vicinity of the unusual chakras he was sensing, easily teleporting to the thrown kunai. Activating his Sharingan, he emerged from the alleyway he'd landed in and quietly slipped into the crowd, keying in on the chakra signatures and following them. As he drew closer, his senses directed him to a certain pair. Eyes narrowing, Yoru threw another kunai in their direction, and just as it passed them, he warped to it, standing in their path. "Yo. Foreigners, right? What business do you have in Sunagakure?" he asked casually, twirling the kunai around his index finger. "Not to sound overly suspicious, but even in this day and age, one can never put too much trust initially in shinobi from the outside. Especially ones as obviously competent as yourselves." Had he gauged the two women to be weak, he would likely have not apprehended them. It wasn't uncommon for lower ranked shinobi of other villages to be sent as approved messengers, escorts, or to assist on missions assigned by the Union. More powerful, higher ranked shinobi, however...were a different story. ---- The two eye the individual with a hint of concern but at the same time a visage of sincerity, a hint that their intentions were not of harm. Shishi, whose large frame and unusually tall stature may cause an air of intimidation, was always a pariah of doing the right thing, even if doing the right thing meant bending the law a little bit, but that time had passed, given her status as a burned spy. Now, she was nothing but a well-intentioned mercenary. Inochi, on the other hand, a figure of renown in her home village, a singer with a gentle voice and a soft heart, one who has seen many battles and helped steer the tide of a war, was much more regal in posture, and her attire gave off an air of royalty. One would mistake Shishi for being her protective knight in shining armor, given her size and stature. "Well, we heard Sunagakure was lovely this time of year so we'd stop by and give the village a look. That's the unofficial story. Officially, we're here on an important task. You did well in hiding your steps, blending in with the crowds. But there's something unmistakable about that kunai of yours. It's marked with a return, an anchor that keeps you from getting trapped in the dimension it puts you in. Tug the rope, so to speak, and it brings you back out, no time having passed at all. The Flying Thunder God technique. An old technique, meant to be used for shock and awe attacks at a moment's notice. Quite a useful little getaway tool, too. Get yourself in too heavy a situation, and you can get yourself back to safety without a scratch. It takes a skilled hand and a steady control to keep the dimension stable enough to jump in and out. Anyway, as to why we're here. We're looking for two particular individuals. Kisui Iyoku, and his wife, Suzume Aburame. We've caught wind that they were here, and tried to catch up to them before they left, but it looks like we were a touch too late." Shishi replies, leaning her back against the wall of a house behind her. Her life as a spy has allowed her to see things most people would miss, a sort of hyper-observation that would be considered paranoia had it not been from the eyes of a spy. ---- She recognizes my Flying Thunder God Technique, eh? As well as the skill it takes to pull it off? Heh, that's not your everyday ninja, that's for sure. When would she have seen the technique in person before now...? She talks like she knows it well... Yoru folded his arms across his chest, nodding as the taller of the two kunoichi spoke. "Well, I wasn't expecting to have my ninjutsu recognized, but you're right. It's indeed the Second Hokage's Flying Thunder God." He found himself curiously sizing the two up, pondering what sort of skills they might have. Even the smaller woman looked like one not to be trifled with, despite the sweet, meek appearance. He could sense it. Yoru's attention was snagged on a familiar name that the taller woman uttered. "Master Kisui? He's been long gone, unfortunately. Heh, Master Kisui is the one who taught me space-time ninjutsu." A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth, despite that he was now thinking about the fact that he missed Kisui. "I'm Yoru Uchiha, by the way. I'm sorry that you didn't find who you were looking for, but if there's anything you'd need, I'd be more than happy to help!" ---- "Name's Shishi Honpou. This lovely lady here is my companion and fiancee, Inochi Yamanaka. She's got a thing about reading emotions, knows truth from lie. Me, I'm just a mercenary from Jikanogakure, wondering around the world looking for some redemption for a few things I'm not particularly proud of." Shishi replies, holding onto Inochi's hand. "I'm pretty much here because a terrorist organization razed my village to the ground. I have no plans of keeping that under wraps. They've gone too far with this, and Shishi happens to have some firsthand knowledge about them. They hurt her in terrible ways, not just from what they've done around her, but what they've done to her. They brainwashed her, sealed away her humanity. I saved her life, and I think she saved mine, too. We needed each other more than we realized. This organization, they're old. They're called the Black Crown." Inochi speaks up, adjusting her dress with her free hand as she holds onto Shishi's. "They're an ultraradicalist group dedicated to destroying anything that holds a chakra source. They worship the Shinju, believing only it should possess chakra, and anyone else that holds it is a heathen that must be purged. Their methods are horrendous. They act like suicide bombers, purging their chakra to create trees of metal that kill untold amounts of people. I saw this happen once, at the Kage Summit in Otogakure. I was sent to do reconnaissance there, check just in case anything went wrong. And let me tell you, everything went wrong. They were there before anyone even entered the building. They were the staff. They waited for the right moment to strike, when all the Kage and Daimyo were situated in large numbers. The entire fourth floor was a slaughterhouse. Couldn't even get the doors open with how many branches were in the wall. We all saved who we could and evacuated. Otogakure was leveled. Nothing was left. It's not a sight I want to relive, so Inochi and I want to stop them. We heard Kisui and Shizume were investigating the Black Crown as well, and we wanted their help. We figured their skills would be invaluable to us, but we missed them." Shishi speaks, adjusting the fringe of her hair. ---- Yoru paid close attention as Shishi and Inochi opened up, telling him a bit about themselves. Inochi of the Yamanaka clan interested him, in particular. His instincts about her not being a pushover were correct. The Yamanaka were a seriously underrated clan with impressive abilities, and he was willing to bet that Inochi was gifted in mental toughness. He also figured she was probably a ninja that relied more on elegant skill than brute force, and those were often some of the deadliest of ninja. Shishi, on the other hand, was so obviously powerful it was laughable. Yoru had a hunch that even next to the Yamanaka, she was the more mysterious of the two. Something in the back of his mind told him that he could trust her, but there was also more to her than she was letting on. Way more. "The Black Crown..." he mumbled. "I'm familiar with them. You're right about Master Kisui and Lady Shizume. While they were here, Master Kisui filled me in on some of what he knows." Exhaling a deep sigh, Yoru's eyes closed for a split second before reopening, blazing crimson and dotted with a trio of tomoe in each eye. The Uchiha looked both Shishi and Inochi in the eyes, hoping that his genjutsu hit home. Yo, can you both hear me? Cocking an eyebrow, the young man's eyes swiveled back and forth between the two uncertainly. I'm not sure if this worked, but you should be under my genjutsu. Don't worry, I mean no harm, I only want to share something with the two of you. He was gambling, for certain, but he could swear that Shishi and Inochi were being forthcoming about their goals and their intentions. If he was wrong...well, he was bound to face trouble for sharing information. On the other hand, if the two kunoichi could be valuable in helping eliminate the Black Crown, surely it was worth the risk. Five days ago, myself and a trio of other Sunagakure ANBU were dispatched to thwart an attack by the Black Crown. There had been whispers of their presence in the Land of Wind, but nobody thought they'd actually try to strike Sunagakure... We successfully repelled them, but all of this is off the record. None of the villagers know, the higher ups don't wish to panic them. Point is, though, the Black Crown are escalating. ---- "A genjutsu usually means a form of interrogation, but I believe this is to share secrets between the two of us. The Black Crown are very dangerous, they don't work in the shadows. They make themselves as observable as possible. They hide in plain sight as ordinary people. If word got out about this, it would cause more than a panic. We're talking about a witch hunt. I've seen this. People put a knife to their family's throats thinking they were one of them. They did more through fear tactics than actual attacks. They let everyone know that they're everywhere. They're the faces we see every single day. The day the Black Crown was put down for good after such a long time was the day everyone could sleep again. Now they're back, and they're back to their old plans. They couldn't have gotten this influential so fast without help. There needs to be some sort of connection that links them to all of this. They need resources, and I think I know where they're getting them from. I was tasked with taking down a massive criminal underground. They had a huge black market spanning the entire world. Weapons, drugs, slaves, they had it all. I took down one of their kingpins and that thread led to the rest of them. But then the Black Crown got involved, and they all went into hiding. I think some, if not all, of these organizations are still kicking, and I believe the Black Crown is using their resources to get back on their feet." Shishi replies, noting the familiar pattern of a genjutsu. It was a common method of extracting information or sharing secrets out of the public eyes and ears. "In the future, if we need to share any secrets, I am well versed in connecting minds. Less obvious than a genjutsu from a Sharingan, and it helps keep a steadier link between us. So if there's any secrets we need to remain as such, just let me know." Inochi peaks up, eyeing both Shishi and Yoru. ---- Glancing at Inochi, he nodded, breaking his genjutsu and deactivating his Sharingan. Of course, she was a Yamanaka; naturally, facilitating nonverbal communication through a shared plane of consciousness would be her specialty. She was right, her abilities would prove to be far more useful in that endeavor than his own admittedly meager genjutsu. Despite his Uchiha lineage, he wasn't gifted in genjutsu in the least. Running a hand through his hair, he ran over Shishi's words in his head. "Tch... If they're on this upward trajectory, you'd have to be right," he mumbled, keeping his voice low. "Otherwise...they wouldn't set their sights on such a big target..." No. The Black Crown were extremists, but not stupid. Attacking one of the Great Five Villages was no small feat; it meant that the Black Crown had resources, and the only logical way was relying on the criminal underground. "Would you two walk with me, and Shishi, could you expand on that thought while we walk?" He'd begun to think it best to inform the Kazekage about what Shishi and Inochi knew. Lady Samiya would want to be in the loop, especially after the Black Crown had targeted the village. "Very well." Shishi replies. As the two follow close behind Yoru, Shishi keeps her eyes open for any potential threats, still paranoid about what could happen. "They built themselves up quickly the first time because they had numbers, plenty of progenitors for the cause. When they lost the war, their numbers dwindled. Those that weren't imprisoned or killed slowly reintegrated into society, mostly those who had doubts about going through with the plans. They didn't have to rely on this criminal underground. The kingpin I took down back in the day, Torui Iwata, handled experimental weapons. These were weapons that could start biological warfare with as little as a drop of neurotoxin in the water supply. He was using a front called Health Research in Kumogakure. They started off small, until their "medicine" started killing people. It was under the radar, but the deaths were mysterious. But no one wanted to investigate it. So the Jikanokage sent me to investigate as a favor to the Raikage at the time. It didn't take long for me to find out they were using the building to create bioweapons designed for silent killing. Prescription humidifiers that could poison the entire air of a house with but a tiny drop of neurotoxin. Tablets that had the double effect of helping a person's symptoms, then killing them shortly after. I set off a fire alarm, got everyone out of the building. Set explosive charges over the entire building. Opened up a few gas lines, then set off the charges. Made it look like a gas fire. After that, it was leading evidence to the founder. I had him tailed the moment he left the building and got a head start, set up some of his product in and around his house, then alerted the authorities." Shishi speaks, keeping her tones hushed. Inochi holds onto her arm, keeping a protective air around the two.